Failed CCU donor pulls dubious gift to FL college ahead of potentially damaging report

The donation to Florida A&M University, once believed to be the largest ever received by a historically Black college or university, has been rescinded after months of controversy surrounding the gift.

Gregory Gerami emailed university officials Thursday to inform them he had canceled the 15 million private equity shares in his Texas hemp farming company that he previously transferred to the FAMU Foundation.

Gerami made national news in May when he appeared on stage at the Tallahassee school’s graduation ceremony and presented a check for more than $237 million.

The excitement surrounding the historic gift quickly waned as questions surfaced about Gerami’s financial capacity to make such a donation and the unknown value of shares in his company, which university officials later acknowledged could be worthless . The Sun News previously identified Gerami as the anonymous donor to Coastal Carolina University , whose $95 million gift was announced in 2020 and quickly collapsed.

Two high-ranking FAMU officials involved in securing the donation have since resigned their positions , including President Larry Robinson , and a Florida Board of Governors member called the situation “an embarrassment to FAMU” that “should never have happened.”

Despite the skepticism, Gerami has continued to assert the stocks he donated were worth hundreds of millions of dollars. He told The Sun News Thursday that the gift was pulled because certain FAMU officials were damaging his business and have refused to sign an IRS form acknowledging the donation that’s needed to claim a charitable contribution tax deduction.

Gerami added that he’s still committed to supporting the university’s students and pledged to donate cash representing the value of the previously donated stocks if his hemp company is sold or goes public.

A FAMU spokesman did not return a voicemail seeking comment on Gerami’s decision.

Internal university communications suggest they might welcome the donation being withdrawn.

Within a week of the donation being announced, President Larry Robinson announced FAMU was putting “a pause” on processing the gift.

Shawnta Friday-Stroud, former FAMU vice president for university advancement, later texted Robinson suggesting he continues communicating that the gift is on hold “because we need a defensible rationale for returning the gift. The reason cannot be reputation-related or something that is not supported by facts because it could lead to a defamation lawsuit at a minimum, especially given all the national media attention,” according to communications received through an open records request.

Internal records show Gerami transferred the 15 million shares in his company, Batterson Farm Corp, on April 15 to the FAMU Foundation through Carta, an online private equity management platform. Carta has since terminated Gerami’s contract for use of their services “for misrepresentations in violation of the terms of service,” a Carta spokesperson previously confirmed to The Sun News.

FAMU’s board of trustees, which was reportedly left in the dark about the donation until it was publicly announced, ordered an independent investigation into the university’s interactions with Gerami.

The results of that investigation could be discussed as soon as next week during the board’s retreat. “Gift Report” appears on the agenda for the board’s Thursday meeting.

Gerami confirmed he was interview as part of the investigation and attempted to cast doubt on the coming report, which he told The Sun News he suspects is “not going to be very pleasant.”

“I’m a realist,” he said. “They’re going to report what they want to report. Doesn’t mean it’s all accurate.”